Avicanna Launches Medical Cannabis Program with its RHO Phyto™ Formulary Nationwide in Colombia

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• Leveraging the successful launch of the Company’s RHO Phyto™ branded advanced medical cannabis product line in Canada, the portfolio of preparations, including oil drops, sublingual sprays, capsules and topicals, are now available nationwide in Colombia through physician prescription under the Magisterial model
• The medical program includes Avicanna’s 3 pillars aimed at setting the gold standard for medical cannabis in Colombia and other Latin American markets, including Medical community education, Advanced pharmaceutical–grade cannabinoid preparations and a Comprehensive patient support program
• Coinciding with the launch of the medical program, Avicanna is hosting its second Colombian symposium Magisterial Formulas: Advances in Cannabinoid Research, Product Offering and Patient Access

TORONTO, Dec. 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Avicanna Inc. (“Avicanna” or the “Company) (TSX: AVCN) (OTCQX: AVCNF) (FSE: 0NN) a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development, manufacturing and commercialization of plant-derived cannabinoid-based products announces the launch of its medical cannabis program in Colombia, under compound pharmacy legislation “Formulaciones Magistrales”, in which Avicanna will provide its standardized, industry-leading cannabinoid formulary to patients and the medical community. Additionally, this program includes the education and training of the medical community and a comprehensive patient support program.

Aras Azadian, CEO of Avicanna Inc., commented: “After 2 years of preparation, we are proud to be launching this complete program in a market that is very significant to us and to be doing so with a medical community that we have been working closely with for close to 3 years. We believe that this medical program will set the gold standard for advanced cannabinoid-based medicine in Colombia and will act as a proof of concept for planned expansions into other Latin American markets.”

The pharmaceutical cannabinoid preparations, which require physician prescription, will be commercialized through a range of business models including direct sales to patients, delivery to national pharmacies and delivery to third party medical institutions across Colombia. This comprehensive medical cannabis program is the first of its kind in Colombia to be educating and training third party health care practitioners on the efficacy of advanced cannabinoid-based medicine across various clinical indications and comorbidities and providing appropriate cannabinoid solutions. The target therapeutic areas include neurological disorders such as epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, psychiatric indications such as PTSD, anxiety, depression as well as chronic pain.

This first complete portfolio of advanced cannabinoid preparations comprises the same scientifically developed formulations as Avicanna’s Canadian RHO Phyto branded dosage forms including topicals, oil drops, sublingual sprays, and capsules in range of CBD only and CBD-THC ratios. The products are subjected to typical pharmaceutical drug development, including stability studies and preclinical analysis where they have demonstrated superior stability and bioavailability in comparison to basic MCT oil formulations. Avicanna continues to advance these formulations through real world evidence trials and further preclinical studies with leading Canadian institutions and clinicians. In addition to its R&D efforts, the Company continues to optimize its current formulas and expand its pipeline of products to include alternative delivery mechanisms. The active pharmaceutical ingredients for this program are sourced from Avicanna’s majority owned subsidiary Santa Marta Golden Hemp S.A.S., where the cannabinoids are extracted from organic and sustainably cultivated plants. The final preparation of these products is completed through Avicanna’s own Good Production Practices (GPP) certified pharmacy lab in Bogota through its wholly owned subsidiary Avicanna LATAM S.A.S. (“Avicanna LATAM”), which is believed to be the first of its kind to be certified for cannabinoid preparations. The education and patient support programs are also managed and operated by Avicanna’s medical team to ensure the services meet Avicanna’s quality standards and complete the full vertical integration.

“At Avicanna, our focus has always been on patients, and today, with the launch of our medical program, patients in Colombia will have access to therapeutic alternatives that may contribute to the control of their comorbidities, improving their quality of life and solving possible unmet medical needs altogether. With that, we have established ourselves as a significant contributor to the health system in Colombia, where we intend to also introduce novel pharmaceutical forms and provide optimal care,” stated Dr. Carlos Maldonado, Senior Vice President, Clinical Development at Avicanna LATAM.

Avicanna’s educational program includes health care practitioner (“HCP”) training packages, educational modules, certifications, medical symposia and real-world evidence trials. The goal of this educational program is to contribute to scientific progress through evidence generation and to equip HCPs to provide patients with optimal care. A timely component of the Company’s educational program, its upcoming event titled Magisterial Formulas: Advances in Cannabinoid Research, Product Offering and Patient Access” on December 10, 2020 at 10am EST, will officially kick off the nation program.

To register for the symposium please visit https://www.bigmarker.com/avicanna-latam-s-a-s/Simposio-de-Avicanna-Colombia-Cannabis-Medicinal

For more information regarding the Magisterial Preparations contact fm@avicanna.com.

About Avicanna Inc.

Avicanna is a diversified and vertically integrated Canadian biopharmaceutical company focused on the research, development, and commercialization of plant-derived cannabinoid-based products for the global consumer, medical, and pharmaceutical market segments.

Avicanna is an established leader in cannabinoid research and development, which it primarily conducts at its R&D headquarters in the Johnson & Johnson Innovation Centre, JLABS @ Toronto, Canada and in collaboration with leading Canadian academic and medical institutions. In addition to its developing pharmaceutical pipeline, Avicanna’s team of experts have developed and commercialized several industry leading product lines, including:

• Pura H&W™: an advanced and clinically tested line of CBD consumer derma-cosmetic products; and,
• RHO Phyto™: an advanced line of medical cannabis products containing varying ratios of CBD and THC currently available nation-wide across Canada in partnership with Medical Cannabis by Shoppers™, a subsidiary of Shoppers Drug Mart. RHO Phyto is the first strictly medical formulary of advanced “Cannabis 2.0” products, containing oils, sprays, capsules, creams, and gels, all 2 developed with scientific rigour, manufactured under GMP standards and supported by pre-clinical data.

With ongoing clinical trials on its derma-cosmetic (Pura H&W), medical cannabis (RHO Phyto) and a pipeline of pharmaceutical products, Avicanna’s dedication to researching the important role that cannabinoids play in an increasingly wider scope of products has been at the core of the Company’s vision since its inception. Furthermore, Avicanna’s commitment to education is demonstrated through its annual medical symposium, the Avicanna Academy educational platform, and the My Cannabis Clinic patient program through its subsidiary company.

Avicanna manages its own supply chain including cultivation and extraction through its two majority-owned subsidiaries, Sativa Nativa S.A.S. and Santa Marta Golden Hemp S.A.S., both located in Santa Marta, Colombia. Through these sustainable, economical, and industrial scale subsidiaries, Avicanna cultivates, processes, and commercializes a range of cannabis and hemp cultivars dominant in CBD, CBG, THC, and other cannabinoids for use as active pharmaceutical ingredients. Avicanna’s Avesta Genetica program specializes in the development and optimization of rare cultivars for commercial production along with feminized seeds for global export. In June 2020, Avicanna made history with a shipment of hemp seeds to the United States of America by completing the first ever export of hemp seeds from Colombia.

SOURCE Avicanna Inc.

Stay Connected

For more information about Avicanna, visit www.avicanna.com, call 1-647-243-5283, or contact Setu Purohit, President by email at info@avicanna.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information and Statements

This news release contains “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information contained in this press release may be identified by the use of words such as, “may”, “would”, “could”, “will”, “likely”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “believe, “intend”, “plan”, “forecast”, “project”, “estimate”, “outlook” and other similar expressions, and includes statements with respect to the ability of the Company to provide the Colombian population with standardized and advanced medical solutions, the ability of the Company and Avicanna LATAM to manufacture its line of advanced cannabinoid formulations to service individual prescriptions issued by qualified medical professionals, the Company’s ability to set the standard in Colombia and other Latin American countries by offering products with years of extensive research and development manufactured with world-class quality standards, the ability of the unique formulations to maintain the stability of the cannabinoids over the course of treatment, the ability of the Company to source the cannabinoids for the manufacture of the medical cannabis products from Santa Marta Golden Hemp S.A.S., the ability of the product formulations to address specific medical conditions, and the ability of Santa Marta Golden Hemp S.A.S. to continue to cultivate cannabis. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and is based upon a number of estimates and assumptions of management in light of management’s experience and perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors relevant in the circumstances, including assumptions in respect of current and future market conditions, the current and future regulatory environment; and the availability of licenses, approvals and permits.

Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information is based are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because the Company can give no assurance that they will prove to be correct. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those contemplated by these statements. Forward-looking information is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to current and future market conditions, including the market price of the common shares of the Company, and the risk factors set out in the Company’s annual information form dated April 15, 2020 and final short form prospectus dated November 27, 2020, filed with the Canadian securities regulators and available under the Company’s profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

The statements in this press release are made as of the date of this release. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise, other than as required by applicable securities laws.